Capitol Square

The Capitol Square with the equestrian statue of Mark Aurel

The Capitol Square , in Italian Piazza del Campidoglio , has been the central square on the Capitol in Rome since early modern times . The Italian state has awarded Capitol Square with the European Heritage Label .

history

Engraving from 1568 by Étienne Dupérac (1525–1604)

The cordonata on an engraving by Piranesi , 18th century.

In ancient times there was a depression at this point, which was called the Asylum . This depression was framed by the two hilltops Capitolium , on which the temple of Jupiter was located, and the Arx , on which a castle and the temple of Juno Moneta stood. This depression on the Capitol Hill was only accessible from the Roman Forum .

In the late Middle Ages , the depression was filled in to enable the Senator's Palace to face it. Since the former owners no longer liked the view of the forum, they moved the facade away from there to the opposite side. When the popes regained power in Rome after their exile in Avignon and knew how to assert themselves against the nobles, they also took power on the Capitol. Further buildings were built here under her direction.

In the first third of the 16th century , Michelangelo received from Pope Paul III. the order to redesign the place of the Capitol Hill in Rome. In 1538 the bronze equestrian statue of the emperor Marcus Aurelius was brought here and it was now intended to create a worthy setting for it. While most of his ideas were implemented as early as the 16th, at the latest in the course of the 17th century , the visual emphasis was only added in 1940 by the special type of paving.

Michelangelo's design for Capitol Square included the following elements:

• The Cordonata , a flight of stairs in the form of a large ramp, which should allow access from the north. The steps and the slope of the ramp were designed to be suitable for riders on horseback.

Today's Cordonata is a staircase that connects Piazza d'Aracoeli with Capitol Square.

The base of the stairs is flanked by two lions. Halfway up on the left is a sculpture Cola di Rienzis , created by Girolamo Masini in 1887 . The upper end of the staircase is marked by the dominant statues of the Dioscuri Castor and Pollux with their horses on the reins, which were installed here in 1585 in place of the statues planned by Michelangelo. Like all the statues in the square, they are copies, most of the originals are kept in the Capitoline Museums .

• The buildings ( Senator's Palace , Palazzo Nuovo , Conservator's Palace ) should be trapezoidal to each other so that the square appeared larger.
• The statue of Marcus Aurelius should face north towards the Vatican . The equestrian statue should be visually highlighted by lines on the pavement that should represent a twelve-pointed star that is fitted into an oval .

The equestrian statue was erected in 1538 by order of Pope Paul III. Farnese moved from its old location in front of the Lateran Palace to Capitol Square. Therefore, on the base of the statue, which was also designed by Michelangelo, there are the lilies of the Farnese . After the renovation was completed in 1990, the original is in the Capitoline Museums.

• The Senator's Palace was to receive a large double staircase, which should underline the symmetry of the square.

The palace was built according to Michelangelo's design, but the facade was designed by Giacomo della Porta and Girolamo Rainaldi between 1547 and 1579 .

The two-flight staircase that leads to the palace portal was built between 1547 and 1754, without the column-supported canopy envisaged in the design .

In the arcade niche under the stairs there is an ancient sculpture of Minerva on a base , which was rededicated as a Roma Dea when the fountain in front of the stairs designed by Matteo di Città di Castello (1555–1632) was built in 1588/89. The two colossal flanking statues , which symbolize the Nile and the Tiber, come from the Baths of Constantine and were moved to Capitol Square in 1518.

Today the Senator's Palace is the City Hall of Rome and the official seat of the Mayor of Rome.

On March 25, 1957, the Treaty of Rome was signed by the Federal Republic of Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands in the Senator’s Palace.

• The Palazzo Nuovo was only built in the 17th century by order of Innocent X. under the direction of Girolamo and Carlo Rainaldi , who at least followed Michelangelo's instructions in the design of the facade. The project was not completed until 1663. Today the Palazzo Nuovo is part of the Capitoline Museums.

and display information about the image

View over the square, on the right the Palazzo Nuovo

literature

• Roma . Guida d'Italia. Edited by Michele D'Innella. Milano: Touring Club Italiano. 3rd ed. 2007. pp. 438–455.

See also

• Capitol - The Capitol Square

Web links

Commons : Campidoglio  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

• The Capitol Square at Roma Antiqua
• Piazza del Campidoglio, Italian

Coordinates: 41 ° 53 ′ 35.8 "  N , 12 ° 28 ′ 59"  E